In a since deleted social media post on Dec. 15, a special district in Natrona County called for classifying EMS as an essential service under Wyoming law, like firefighting and law enforcement, to give it dedicated funding.
That’s in response to property tax reductions that have gnawed away at the district’s budget, as well as those of other EMS and fire districts across the state. Wyoming lawmakers passed cuts to help those grappling with rising inflation and high property tax rates following the COVID-19 pandemic.
“ Every second counts towards trying to save somebody's life,” said Leighton Burgen, the public information officer and EMT at the Natrona County Fire District who wrote the post. “There's talk of just not hiring new guys as they come in. So once people either retire or leave, we won't hire again. We've already had a reduced amount of pay. Our salaries have already been reduced. We're well below the state minimums, across the state.”
The post also asked residents of the county to reach out to their state lawmakers and county commissioners and push for increasing the total number of mill levies fire districts can apply for, which haven’t been updated since 1947.
Fire districts are currently eligible for three mills, which represent the local mechanism by which municipalities, counties and special districts can generate property tax revenue. One mill represents $1 a taxpayer must pay for every $1,000 worth of assessed real property value in a particular area.
The Natrona County Fire District serves unincorporated parts of the county and some incorporated parts of Casper, for a total of about 5,300 square miles of response area.
Burgen explained that the communities his district protects include a large number of seniors aged 65 and older and veterans.
Both groups are eligible for property tax refund programs established by the state Legislature that are separate from laws like SF 69, which cut single-family homeowners’ taxes by 25% for the first $1 million of their home's fair market value. SF 69 became law following the 2025 legislative general session.
“ The estimate that I was given by our fire chief yesterday was that by July of 2027, we could possibly see a 67% reduction in our budget … if nothing else is made up as far as something at the state legislator level, at the county commission level, to be able to bring in more funding for the fire district,” Burgen said.
He stressed that the budget issues the district is facing aren’t solely due to property tax reductions, but also because the local government entity has, in the past, been paid a lower tax allocation by the county assessor than it should have been. But cuts like the 25% reduction haven’t helped, he said.
“ We're seeing a 25% reduction in property taxes, which is great for every person,” he said. “It's great for you and me as individuals. We're seeing less property taxes, which is awesome. It's less that we have to pay in, but what does that … sacrifice? Well, for us at the Natrona County Fire District, the 25% reduction in your taxes is [an immediate] 25% reduction in our budget, almost.”
In 2024 and 2025, the district had a budget of around $2.2 million. By 2027, Burgen said that number could shrink to about $1.4 million. The district has cut overtime and closed a fire station on the east side to keep operations going at another, he said.
Burgen said he deleted the social media post at the request of his fire chief, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Wyoming Public Radio about who had asked for the post to be taken down.
“ Unfortunately, in Wyoming, if EMS is not made an essential service, then there's no dedicated funding,” he said. “You call 911. You might not get anybody for a long time or anybody at all. You might have to drive yourself to a hospital or someplace that has EMS for you. It’s a very scary thought.”
The Casper Mountain Fire Protection District is suffering from depleted revenues too, Burgen added. That district’s budget message for 2025 reads, “The Casper Mountain Fire Protection District was developed to keep ordinary expenses under the anticipated revenues. This year however with this year's property tax reduction we expect an extreme increase to our expenses.”
Burgen referenced a YouTube video produced by the Wyoming EMS Association that calls for making EMS an essential service released in June 2025. That video cites communities like Centennial, which it says has lost its only ambulance, and mentions Wyoming has seen “16 EMS services either fold or consolidate with another service” in the last 10 years.
Besides special fire districts in Natrona County, the county fire department in Crook County has been hit by property tax cuts, too. That’s meant the department is unable to purchase new vehicles and life-saving fire shelters for the foreseeable future.
State lawmakers forwarded a bill to the upcoming budget session that would eliminate all residential property taxes in Wyoming via an amendment to the state Constitution.
Lawmakers also forwarded a bill that would raise sales tax in the state as a way to provide backfill for local governments. Currently, the state’s sales tax rate is 4%. The bill would raise that number to 6%.
Beyond that, the 2026 general election ballot will see a citizen-led initiative to cut residential property taxes by 50% for those who’ve lived in the state for at least a year.
This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.
